This invention concerns a device for an office capable of taking on multiple spatial configurations.
This office device consists of several elements including one work surface which is capable of fitting inside the other elements or being brought to a position of use by pivoting and/or sliding.
This type of office device can be used in companies as well as in hotels, or in seminar facilities, etc. It meets the criteria of modularity, flexibility and allows the implementation of business policies aimed at the continuous improvement of the tasks performed particularly due to the arrangement of the work spaces. This type of office device therefore has the purpose of easily and quickly adapting the work environment on the basis of the type of activity and/or the number of users.
Numerous modular office devices of this type exist, which can be classified schematically in three categories, namely:                office devices having an additional work surface which is movable only by rotation in relation to a main work surface or in relation to a storage container;        office devices having a single work surface which is movable only by translation in relation to a fixed support of the shelving type;        office devices having an additional work surface which is movable by means of a combination of different movements.        
The document U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,448 describes in particular a structure which belongs to this third category, and discloses a small intermediate tray placed between two tables of the same height. This intermediate tray is movable between a closed position where the tray is hidden under the two tables placed one against the other, and an open position where the tray is accessible between the two tables placed apart from one another. This tray is connected to one the tables by pivoting and sliding means.
The major drawback of this configuration lies in the fact that the access to the intermediate tray is necessarily preceded by the displacement of one of the tables, which is not always easy for reasons of weight. Furthermore, the intermediate tray has a very restricted surface and its positioning in relation to the tables is limited to a single option.